Thanks for the comment on the synthetic oils, Bloxhamd. Your research had a lot different results than PBS
(Public Broadcasting System).

Mareo

I put a 27 inch wide three core Oldsmobile radiator in my first sedan from an early 70s Cutlass. I drilled two holes to put the rubber lower mounts into and put a piece of sheet metal
over the top to hold it in place. That was on the turboed A12 and I could never get the temp guage to get up to the cold mark without a thermostat in the motor. I lived in Florida one
very hot summer and it still never ran up to the cold mark. I do not use thermostats unless I have to to make the heater work. A cold engine runs much better than a hot engine.

Mareo

Copy and paste links into messages. That's the only I have found out
how to do it.
and that isn't foolproof.

Mareo

That's a great idea Steve. My 1200 looks a bit rough still but mechanically it is in reasonably good condition. I have replaced all of the steering and suspension parts and all of the
bearings and brakes. Mostly the things that will go bad on the trip will be starters and alternators. I have spares but I am not going to take any spares along with me. I will buy any
parts that I need when needed. My left front is a bit dented and I will put the car in the shop next week and get the inner fender well pulled out and the new fender put on properly. I
will start sanding and primering the car while I am loafing around and get it ready to paint when I return home. I have to get a reasonable digital camera to take along also just to
keep everyone abreast of where I will be and what I have done to the car.

Mareo

I think Strut inserts are a bad idea. I have put strut inserts into two 1200s and neither rode as well afterwards. Nothing can beat the ride of the original struts. Plus the original
dampening can be modified so easily by changing the hydraulic fluid and with inserts, you would have to change the inserts to do that. The strut inserts wear out too fast also. My original
1200, Mareo Speedwagon I, had 17 years and over 300,000 miles on the original struts. They were never rebuilt either and rode excellent. At close to 200,000 miles, I learned the easy way
to change the fluid in the struts. Unless your struts are totally worn out, rebuild them if they can be rebuilt and you will be much happier, I was anyway.

Mareo

No, I have never heard of Rick Sieman, his column or Off-Road.com but they sound enticing. Maybe I can stop by and check out everyones
1200 during my treks.

Mareo

I had to refuse to get the sedan, as much as I hated it, because I probably will not be able to afford it by the time he leaves for Germany. I did get the 510 three weeks ago and then my
house was broken in to two weeks ago. I haven't had time to work on the 510 yet to get it running. I have rented two storage units for my stuff and I am going to take off in a couple of weeks
and drive my coupe for a years tour of America. I plan to stay at least one week in each state and longer in some. I will keep the CLUB posted as to where I will be and how my trip is going.
I plan to spend a lot of time in libraries all across the country doing research and finishing writing a book on the American Civil War of the 1860s. I have it almost half written already. If
I can sell my Mazda B2000 before I leave, I will get the sedan.

Synthetic oils have their purpose and don't get me wrong on this. If you are out a long ways from help and you are out of cooling fluid, the synthetic oils will not break down in the
extreme heat as fast as regular oil. It is proven though that synthetic oils do not make motors last any longer than regular oils. What makes a motor go more miles is the regular oil
changes. The carbon particles fron the burnt gasoline is a very hard substance and it acts like extremely fine grit that wears away at bearing and cylinder surfaces. Changing the oil
removes this carbon grit. This carbon grit is what makes your oil turn a dark color, so the color of your oil should be the most determining factor of when to change your oil, not how
many miles you go.

Mareo

One other thing, Eddie, the Sunny was only used in America as a high performance 1200. It is probably the same as the GX models that other parts of the world got. I am just now
learning how different the American models are from the rest of the world. As far as I know, all of the Datsuns sold in America were made in Japan. I had never heard of any made in
Australia or elsewhere. I was amazed to learn last year that the Ute is still being made somewhere in the world. I had never heard of the Ute until I joined this club 1 1/2 years ago.

Mareo

You are right, Eddie, America got the early B210s of 1974 with 155 13 tires and the A13 engine, which had the same 73mm bore as the A12 but with the longer 77mm stroke that is the
same as the A14. It also had the distributor in the middle like the A14.

Mareo